NBL

POST # 55


I awoke this morning with many thoughts on my mind. Watson hadn't noticed that I was awake, which I could tell because of the continuous snoring sound that was emanating from his nose, so I took adavantage of this fact and just lay there thinking about things, and about what I was planning to do with this new precious day that had dawned.

Because it was blog day, the last blog for the year as a matter of fact, I was pondering what I would write about today. One of the thoughts I did have was to write about the year just spent, about where I have been and what animals I have cared for. With this in mind I pushed back the covers, which caused the snore machine to wake up out of his slumber and soon we were up and at it.

It was a relatively early start to my day and so things were looking good as far as getting my writing done, and the fact that I had some idea of the subject matter made things look even more promising. So this is where I found myself early this morning. And then the phone rang.

The call was from a friend back in Canada, and it was unexpected and if it wasn't for the call display on the phone which let me know where the call was coming from, I quite likely would have just let the answering machine pick up. Most calls at this hour are from some robot trying to sell something. But I did answer and we ended up talking for quite a while. We talked about a variety of subjects but at some point in the conversation, the subject swung around to a website that I have been following for a couple of years now at least, called "Nature Bats Last" which is produced by Dr. Guy McPherson. I've touched on the subject matter contained therein from time to time on my blog but I don't think that I have ever mentioned the website by name up until today. Anyhow, this came up in our conversation, and this friend was very open to at least listening to what I had to say regarding the information presented at NBL. He was interested to the point where he said that he would follow up by having a look and perhaps we could discuss it on a future call. I guess time will tell whether he looks at it or not, but I trust his word, so I imagine that we will be talking about it in future phone conversations. The information presented there really gets to the heart of the matter regarding the subject of climate change, and it's a subject that I have followed now since way back in 2005. It's also a subject that seems to be one of those topics that one is never suppose to talk about in polite company, like politics or religion as it can alienate a lot of folks. Thankfully I am beyond worrying about the impact the topic may or may not have on the listener now, and so it does come up in conversation time and again. So, this friend and I ended up talking at length about the website and after I got off the call, I thought for a while, and decided to write about it here. If as a result of our conversation, the information presented there is explored by one more person, then it was a conversation worth having. If by writing this blog and mentioning the website by name causes others to read the information contained therein, then all the better.

Our conversation was over and it was good to have an opportunity to catch up and talk even though some of the subject matter wasn't easy to talk about. Sitting here at the computer, the snore machine which is Watson the dog, is right back to doing what he does best. He is curled up on my lap and is snoring away contentedly. It amazes me that he doesn't wake himself up as a result of the sound of his own snoring, but I suppose he's used to it by now. After almost two weeks here, I too am slowly adapting to his sound as well.

This is a rather short entry but it seems to be all the words I can come up with for now. Perhaps 2013 will help to pry a few more words out of my head. We'll have to wait and see.

Happy Trails,
Paul
The Thoughtful Wanderer

A late PS:

At precisely 6:18pm tonight, I stood in the desert and watched awestruck as the full moon rose in the eastern sky. It may well be the most spectacular moonrise that I have ever had the pleasure to experience, and I was happy to be alive to watch it.

ELEMENTARY MY DEAR WATSON

POST # 54


The chair that I am sitting in as I begin to write this blog, has one of those adjustable knobs underneath the seat. One moment I am at the level that is suitable for my typing and then the next thing I know is that I have descended in an instant and the computer keyboard is now way up high in comparison. What the??? I know it can't be blamed on the Mayans, because here it is the 21st, and I'm still here and so is everything else. The answer to the problem is elementary my dear Watson. It's Watson.

Watson as mentioned in my previous entry is the Boston terrier that I am now in charge of for the next six weeks or so. He is only about ten months old at this stage and so he has that puppy tendency to want to play with and or chew on anything and everything that is within his reach. The black knob underneath my chair is just one of those "toys" that Watson has discovered is fun to play with. I think he takes pleasure in watching me drop like a stone, when he chews the knob just right. One would think that he has enough toys to play with around here that he doesn't have to choose my chair as another one. However in the short time that I have been here, he seems to be destroying those other toys at a rapid rate of knots, so I guess the chair is just a natural extension to his toy collection.

Watson is the first Boston terrier that I have ever had the pleasure to care for and so it's a learning experience to find out how he ticks. I have to give him full marks in the affectionate department. In fact, just a moment ago, he was sound asleep on the floor next to me, and it's almost as if he read my thought about being affectionate, because the next thing I know is that he has hopped up on my lap for a cuddle. His head is actually lying across one of my wrists at the moment and he is beginning to snore. This makes for challenging typing, but I will be able to use him now as my excuse for any typing errors from this line forward.

Speaking of snoring, Watson has that down to a fine art, and it's loud. This wouldn't be such a big issue except for the fact that he wants to share the bed with me at night. Now I am used to having pets curled up with me in bed. It comes with the territory, but I have never come across one that snores as loud as Watson. So loud in fact, that I have resorted to using ear plugs so that I can fall asleep. I hope that I will get accustomed to his sound soon, so that I can discard the plugs, but time will tell.

This snoring business makes me think back on a time when I was living in Melbourne. I had just moved in to a new place, sharing with another guy whom I had only recently met through a friend. I had been there about a week and on the night in question I went to bed, and about 3am I woke to what sounded like another person snoring in the bed beside me. I knew that there was only the two of us in the house and for a few moments there were a variety of thoughts going through my head. I wasn't quite sure how I was going to handle the fact that this relative stranger, and a guy at that, had decided to sneak into bed with me in the middle of the night. I flicked on the light switch and I was immediately relieved and I began to chuckle. In bed next to me, was his cat, Motchca, snoring to beat the band, and she sounded just like a human. Needless to say, I didn't have to move out as a result, and Zoltan and I became friends and I ended up living there for a couple of years.

Back to Watson. In addition to his snoring in bed habit, he also likes to burrow under the covers and get nestled in next to me. At least then, his snoring is somewhat muffled, and he provides a little body heat for the remainder of the evening. This is all new territory for me and I am beginning to adjust to his habits and as time passes, I imagine that we will find a comfortable routine that suites the both of us.

My journey to Yuma was uneventful, even at the beginning last week in Vancouver airport, where I was sure that all the hardware in my leg would set the alarms ringing as I walked through security, however nothing at all happened. I mentioned to the security people there prior to walking through, that I had metal in my leg, and when I went through without incident, the security lady actually made a joke about it and said and I quote, "maybe the doctor just put wood in there." This made us all laugh, and it was a rare moment of humanness that is hard to find in airport security personnel in this day and age. It was appreciated by all who were with in earshot.

I was on two flights to get here, one to Phoenix and then a shorter one to Yuma from there. As we flew over miles upon miles of desert I couldn't help but wonder about what an issue water might become in the not too distant future for this part of the continental United States. As much as we in the Pacific Northwest like to complain from time to time about the rain, rain, rain, at least we probably don't have to worry about going thirsty. I can't be sure that the people living here will be able to say the same thing down the road.

Well, the hour is getting late, and so it's time to wrap this up for this week. Watson is snoring away contentedly on my lap, totally oblivious to the words that are being written about him. Poor little bonehead. As long as he has a warm lap, a few toys to play with, a walk now and again, and some food and water, he's happy. Or so he appears to be.

He seems to be saying to me, "Simplicity is best, Paul."
"Why of course, it's elementary my dear Watson."

The Yuma journey continues to unfold.

Updates to follow.

Happy trails,
Paul
The Thoughtful Wanderer

YORKSHIRE TO BOSTON

POST # 53


The morning dawned crisp and clear, and the baby boneheads, aka Jackson and Peach were somewhat shocked when I let them out the door this morning. A very quick scout around the back yard with just enough time for a morning pee and then they were anxious to come back in to the warmth of the house. They had kibble on their little minds. Ah, the simple life of the dog, sleep, pee, eat, go for a walk every now and again and receive some love and affection and they are happy with their lot in life. They understand the idea of simplicity and what is important to be happy. As I write these words they are now curled back up in their little dog beds, back in dreamsville again, probably looking forward to their next walk, or treat, or pat on the head.

WEATHER FORECAST FOR VANCOUVER FOR SUNDAY DECEMBER 16, 2012
RAIN, WINDY, LOW 3, HIGH 6

WEATHER FORECAST FOR YUMA ARIZONA FOR SUNDAY DECEMBER 16, 2012
SUNNY, LOW 11 HIGH 19

Comparing the above two weather forecasts it is easy to see which one looks more inviting. Fortunately for Paul the housesitter, I will have the opportunity to experience both of them on the same day. You see, on Sunday, I will be flying to Yuma for my next housesit assignment. I head out on an early morning flight to Phoenix, and after a short layover there, I will continue on to Yuma.

This will be the first time since having my accident back in March that I will be subjected to the airport security scanners, and I am curious to say the least as to what kinds of alarms will be triggered by all the new metal in my right leg. Two metal plates and twenty screws will not get through undetected I suspect. I am planning to take some documentation along with me from the hospital in case I need any proof of the legitimacy of my noisy leg. The surgeon who performed my operation told me that the only thing I would have to do would be to show the security people the enormous scar that I now have on my leg, and that should be all the proof required to back up my story. Well I guess this Sunday I'll be able to finally test out that theory. I am not too concerned about it here in Vancouver, but it might be a whole other story when I have to check in for my flight to Yuma from Phoenix. Time will tell, and if nothing else, it will be both an adventure and an education.

Yuma is probably the last place I would have ever thought that I would be going to do a housesit, however as a result of my Dawson City contacts, I have the opportunity to go on this new adventure and go to a place I have never been before. I will be down sizing in the dog department, going from two here to one there, a dog named Watson. He is another small dog, a Boston Terrier, so I am staying in Terrier Territory, from Yorkshire to Boston for the next couple of months and I am sure that I will have some Watson stories to tell as time goes by in Yuma.

So with only today and tomorrow left here in Vancouver I have a few things to get done before I go, but I will try and spend as much of my remaining hours with my buddies Jackson and Peach. Over the years that I have been housesitting here, we have become good mates, and I will be a little sad to say goodbye to them tomorrow night. I can already picture the scene. I will leave out the back door and as I walk to the back gate to leave the yard, they will be standing at the window in the door, looking in my direction, with that look of "why are you leaving us, what did we do wrong to deserve this?" For a moment or two I will linger at the back gate and stare back at their little faces and say goodbye. If I linger too long, I will only want to come right back to the house to see them one more time. So with a final look into their eyes, I will unlatch the gate, and head on my way to the skytrain station for my journey to the airport.

It will be the start of a new adventure and I will look forward to it, like I have all of the adventures in the past. After all, what else is a thoughtful wanderer like me to do, but enjoy my wanderings? And with this new adventure there will most certainly be new things to be thoughtful about.

Happy trails,

Paul
The Thoughtful Wanderer

FARTS AND METHANE

POST # 52


I was sitting in the kitchen yesterday, gazing out the windows at a couple of flies buzzing around, like it was a summer's day, and yesterday was anything but a summer's day. Flies in December? That can't be normal.

Peach walked in the kitchen and for a moment she stood looking out into the back yard, then promptly turned and began walking back into the living room, glancing my way as she did so. Was that a smirk on her face or was I just imagining it? She was only out of the room a moment or two and then it hit. I couldn't have seen it coming and I didn't hear a thing, but the fragrance was unmistakable. This cute little Yorkie with the cute name to match, had just farted and then left the room. It kind of reminded me of that Monty Python line spoken with a french accent, "I fart in your general direction." The fart was invisible but its effects certainly were not.

Now it's interesting how the brain works. There I was, thinking of flies, then farts, and how that even invisible things can have an effect, and my brain then made the connection with gas, which then made me think of methane gas and that got me to thinking about the ice in the Arctic. What? Huh? Where is he going with this thread of an idea?

Well you see, as a result of all the fossil fuels which we have been burning over the last one hundred and fifty years or so, the planet has heated up to such an extent that it has actually had the effect of warming the Arctic ocean enough, to cause methane gas, to be released into the atmosphere. Methane gas is a much more powerful greenhouse gas and because it is now venting into the atmosphere, this is accelerating the warming effect. This is what is known as a positive feedback loop. The result of all this warming is that the Arctic ice which has acted like a big planet earth air conditioning unit, is now melting at a much more rapid pace than was thought even back in 2007, when the projected date for an ice free Arctic was 2100. Professor of Ocean Physics, Peter Wadhams of Cambridge University who has been studying the sea ice now for decades has concluded that we probably will see an ice free Arctic Ocean not by 2100, but as early as 2015. And some even suggest it could happen as early as next year. Now here's the thing. The Arctic sea ice has been there for about three million years. And now the forecasts say it will be gone in about three years. So in other words, this air conditioning unit for the planet will be turned off at least for a few months of the year initially, and then as the positive feedbacks increase, the ice will melt even more, and eventually there will be no ice left at all. And with it gone, there goes the planet's air conditioning unit. This is very significant for a variety of reasons, which I need not go into here, and yet this is never talked about in the media. I wonder why?? I believe I know why, but I'll let the reader make up their own mind.

There are many more positive feedback loops that could/will add to the warming of the planet, however this one with the methane gas certainly looks like a big one. All of a sudden, the southern hemisphere is looking at least for a while like it might be a better place to hang out. Maybe those Aussies will have the last laugh after all. Or the Kiwis. Or more likely the penguins in Antarctica.

We humans have been so intelligent that we have managed to get ourselves into this situation, and now it's very questionable whether we will be intelligent enough to get our way out. Personally, I have my doubts, but as each new day unfolds I guess we will get to see how this story plays itself out. This intelligence of ours is a double edged sword. I guess if there is some good news, it is that we can at least say we are here, alive to experience it all. What is the Chinese saying, "May you live in interesting times." Well, we certainly are.

These were all the thoughts that were going through my brain yesterday as I waited for the air to clear in the kitchen after Peach's fart. In the meantime Peach and Jackson had settled nicely into their little cozy beds in the room off of the kitchen totally oblivious of course to what the housesitter was thinking about. I glanced over to have a look at the two of them lying there so peacefully in their little dog beds and called out their names. Sleepily they both looked up at me and in spite of what I had been thinking about, I just had to laugh. I am not sure if this is a trait common in all Yorkshire Terriers but these two have the habit of sleeping with their tongues sticking out. It's as though their tongues are too long for their mouths. In any event, it makes me laugh every time and I am thankful that these "baby boneheads" as I refer to them, had managed to bring my mind back to the present moment.

One last look at the flies buzzing around outside and then I said to the baby boneheads, "come on you guys, let's go for a walk," and so off we went.

Dog walking into the future.

Paul
The Thoughtful Wanderer

VANCOUVER MUSINGS

POST # 51


Well here we go again. It's blog day and I woke up wondering just what the heck will I write about today? This seems to be happening more as time passes, and I wonder if I am running out of ideas for a weekly blog? Probably I'm not, but by making that statement I guess I've given myself a built in "out" if I decide to stop writing every week. Maybe one day in the future I will just write, "Sorry, I've run out of ideas, THE END." In the meantime I'll just keep on writing whatever comes into my brain.

So what is in my brain this morning is somewhat of a jumbled mess of thoughts.

I could write about the fact that in the past week alone I have slept in three different locations. Now that keeps things interesting because when I awake it usually takes a few moments to figure out just where I am at. At least enough time has gone by that I don't feel like I am on my sailboat any longer. Also in the past week I have been both in Canada and the USA, and I had to wonder just which country the bed that I was in, was located. This kind of reminds me of the book I just read called "Borderlands" and in it the author is riding a motorcyle along the border between the US and Canada when he comes to a town that straddles the border. There is a library there, and the back half of the building is in Canada but the entrance is on US soil. If you live in Canada you have to cross the border to enter the library, but then you can leave the library through the back door, which pops you right back in Canada. How unique is that? When one looks it up on google maps, not only is the library stradling the border, but it appears that there are at least two houses doing the same thing. So lately I feel like I might be in one of those houses, with one bedroom on the Canadian side and another bedroom on the US side. Or maybe a bedroom on one side of the border and the bathroom on the other. Imagine having to clear customs each time you need to have a pee.

I could also write about the fact that I have made the transition back to dogs from cats for a while at least. My last two housesits have been cat houses, most recently with Shadow the cat and prior to that Oscar and Felix the cats. But as of a few days ago, I am comfortably settled back in with Jackson and Peach, my little Yorkshire terrier mates, here in Vancouver. Maybe that is the best way to figure out which bed and which country I am in. Just check out the animals living there and then I'll know. I'm hooped if I end up with a housesit without pets though.

Maybe I could write about the weather. If it gets down to that, we know the blog is on it's last legs for sure.

How about writing more updates regarding the progress of my leg? Well there isn't much to report on that front other than the fact that I seem to be enjoying incremental improvements as the weeks go by and so that is probably the best I can hope for at this stage.

I could write about the fact that today would have been my dad's 96th birthday if he was still alive. In fact, my dad came up in conversation recently, most likely because I was thinking about his birthday, and that lead me into talking about how he would make crepes each Sunday while I was growing up. Well before I knew it, I was emailing my sister Gerry, to find out if she could remember the recipe and soon after that I found myself in a kitchen churning out crepes as fast as people could eat them.
Gerry obviously had the right recipe (thanks Ger) and the proof was in the eating. Lots of smiling faces and satisfied tummies all around. Perhaps I'll do it again sometime in the future because it was kind of fun, and the crepes tasted pretty damn good as far as I could tell. Just like the old man made all those years ago.

I could also talk about yesterday. Why yesterday? Well, I have some Dawson friends visiting Vancouver at the moment and we had arranged to try to get together in the afternoon, out at the place they are staying which is a long skytrain ride from my current housesit. I took the skytrain out to the Loughheed Town Centre, one of the large shopping malls in the greater Vancouver area. The plan was to call them once I arrived in order to see if we could rendezvous. Well unfortunately that didn't happen, but for a while I found myself hanging around a shopping mall. These days, me hanging around a shopping mall would be like a vampire hanging around in a room full of silver crosses. In other words, not my favourite place to spend time. But as I was there anyway, waiting for the appointed time to call my friends, I did a walk around to give my leg a work out. Here it is less than a month before Christmas and you could have shot a cannon down any walkway and you wouldn't have hit a soul. The place looked deserted. And in addition to that there were a few shops with signs advertising 80% off sales, and one shop was having a going out of business sale. Certainly a sign of the times, as the industrial civilization continues to wind down and/or the fact that too many people are in too much debt or too broke to think about going out and buying more stuff. This unscheduled mall visit just happened to coincide with the theme of the book I am reading at the moment, titled, "Too Much Magic" by James Howard Kunstler, a follow up to a book he wrote in 2005 titled, "The Long Emergency" and as far as I can tell by looking at the state of affairs at this mall, Kunstler has nailed it right on the money. I think there are plenty of people who know that things aren't quite the way they were, but still we try to hang on and pretend that things will be ok if we just wish a bit harder.

And now I've just found one more thing to write about which wasn't even on the thought agenda when I began this blog. A few minutes ago, Peach was looking up at me with that "can I sit in your lap please" look, and so of course I obliged her. What she didn't relay with that look was her ulterior motive, which I have now found out more than once, was to get settled in nicely, fall asleep and then ever so quietly start letting out little Yorkie farts, which pack a surprising punch for such a little dog.
Thanks a lot Peach. But she looks so damn content in my lap, that I am happy to put up with her farting. That is, until my coffee cup is empty, and then the party will be over for a while at least.


Well, it's a grey morning here in Vancouver, but for now it's not raining, so I'll have a quick look at the satellite weather map and if the conditions look good, I will hop on my bike and head out on a mission. The mission? To track down some Chimes ginger chews, which is a new taste treat I recently had the opportunity to try. They are so good, that it will be worth the search.

Time now for a second cup of coffee. Sorry Peach, you'll have to move and go fart somewhere else.

Back in December.

All the best,

Paul
The Thoughtful Wanderer

WINDING DOWN WITH SHADOW

POST # 50


Yikes!!!!! It's late, almost 11am and I have only now just begun to write a few words for this week's entry. Usually on "blog day" I am up early and for the most part I have had at least a seed of an idea or two to get my writing started. But this morning I seem to have drawn a blank. I can think of a reason why, as my mind lately is on other things, but be that as it may, I have committed to writing this blog four times per month, so let's get on with it shall we?

The truth is, I did wake up early today, and I had every intention of getting out of bed, and then before I knew it, Shadow the cat had jumped up to join me and he was purring up a storm, so what else is the housesitter to do, but stay there and do his job, petting the cat and enjoying his company for a while.

Of course I knew why he was there, and it wasn't to wake me up to let me know that it was "blog day." Shadow has two missions in life, the morning feed and the evening feed, and he was trying desperately to tell me that it was time for the former. "OK, I know you're hungry, furball, but hey, it's only 6:30am and wouldn't you rather stay here and cuddle for a short while?"

I guess I must have done a good sell job on him, because after I lifted up the covers slightly, he crawled under them, did his little cat turn and settled down on my right arm, purring loudly, and that's the last thing I remember until I woke up again around 9:30am. My arm at that point felt detached from the rest of my body, as Shadow had been lying on it, and had managed to do a pretty good job of cutting off the blood circulation to it. So I began my day today with a wonky right leg and wonky right arm.

Needless to say, Shadow beat me down the stairs to the main floor. Even if I had two perfectly functioning legs, I would be no match for this cat. He literally runs down the staircase, and in a second or two is standing in front of the special door in the kitchen, where the cat food is housed. Because we had such a late start to our day, he is totally focused on the task at hand, which is to have his morning meal. It takes only a moment or two to accomplish this and then I am free to continue on with my day at least until tonight when once again, Shadow and I will be doing the sacred food dance in the kitchen. But for now, my time is my own.

Over the couple of weeks that I have been here at this housesit, I have become quite attached to this long fanged, long haired, long, cat. It happens every time for me with each new animal that has been placed in my care. I guess that is partly why I like to do this house/pet sitting business. And if the pets are happy, then the owners are happy, and everything is as it should be.

Speaking of the owners. They return late tomorrow, from their holiday in Mexico, so I have only two more days including today, to spend with Shadow, so I will try to make the best of it. My guess is, that we will have one more sleep in together tomorrow. But who knows? Shadow might have other ideas about that.

Starting tomorrow, I will have a three day "vacation" prior to my next housesit here in Vancouver with my old dog buddies Jackson and Peach. Now I know, I know, most people who know me think that I am now on permanent vacation because I don't have a regular job to go to, but a vacation for me these days, is living without the responsibility of caring for an animal or animals. So I look forward to this short break, and I know I will have a wonderfully relaxed and enjoyable time prior to my upcoming housesit.


I happened to look back on my blog entry from a year ago, and I was surprised to see that there had already been snow here in Vancouver at that time. No snow yet, but lots and lots of rain. Welcome to the new normal.

Shadow is downstairs now with me, stretched out on top of the pool table, having a nap. What a life. I'll finish these last few words and then it's time to get some food into the petsitter's mouth, and then make a plan for how to spend the rest of the day. Perhaps I will finally get over to the restaurant on Victoria Ave. that makes the Roti Chanai that I talked about in my last blog. Or maybe I'll just hang out with Shadow.


Happy trails,


Paul
The Thoughtful Wanderer

SHADOW, TIME, AND ROTI CHANAI

POST # 49

Success! I am writing this blog from the comfort of my housesit compared to the last one when I tackled it at the library. I discovered in the meantime that I can accomplish this by using a different browser on the net than internet explorer, which saves me the time of riding to the library and back. And since I have returned to Vancouver the weather hasn't been exactly the best for riding, with plenty of grey wet days.

Shadow the cat is happy about the weather, as it has kept the housesitter for the most part, indoors. This has allowed the two of us to bond in a very short time and whereas before he would usually find another spot in the house to camp out while I was doing whatever, that is no longer the case.

The day begins with a Shadow wake up call, meoowww!!!!! It might be a wake up call for me, but from his point of view, it's a "get your lazy butt out of bed and feed me now, please." So right from the get go, I am being "shadowed" by Mr. Furball.

We sleep on the upstairs level of the house, so once I'm up and dressed it's time to head to the main level where the cat food is located in the kitchen. Shadow easily wins the race down the stairs. My leg continues to improve and as a result, stairs are no longer the challenge that they once posed not so very long ago, however I am not to the point of being able to run down them, especially as fast as a cat. I doubt if I will ever run down stairs again, and if I would have been as focused back in March climbing down a hill, as I now am anytime I descend a staircase, I wouldn't now be in the position I am, but maybe that's another one of the lessons to take away from my fall, that being, to be more aware of my present moment in time. So it's all good, and within a few moments I have arrived by the special cupboard which houses the cat food, with a meowing, purring Shadow cat rubbing up against my leg in anticipation of breakfast. With his food dispensed into his dish I am free to go about my morning routine which includes stretches, etc. while I wait for the water to boil for the morning coffee.

Now, I've been here for a week and in that short amount of time, Shadow has lived up to his name, because he shadows me now, wherever I go. The house has three levels, and whatever level the housesitter is on, the cat can be found close by. That's nice, because one of the reasons that I like to pet sit, is so that I can spend time with the animals that I am caring for. Also, because I don't have a "regular" job to go to each day the animals have me around more hours of the day probably than even some of their owners would be around. This certainly helps with the bonding process and keeps the animals and the housesitter very happy indeed.

Speaking of being here a week. I am amazed at just how fast the time has gone by. It seems like only yesterday that I arrived, and in another week I will be leaving. Time is a strange thing. At least I think so. For me, when I am looking forward, it seems like whatever date I am looking forward to, can feel like it's a long way off in the future, however when it arrives, and I look back, I can't believe just how fast that portion of time has gone by. This always happens to me, and I imagine that it is the same for others. In fact, I just got off the phone talking to my next housesit owner, and I commented to her how I couldn't believe that it was already November and that I would soon be back there housesitting. I have known about this upcoming housesit for many months, and back in the summer time it seemed like November was a million years away, and now here we are, and soon it will be goodbye to 2012. As I don't subscribe to the Mayan calendar premise, that everything comes to an end on December 21st, I expect to be around when we turn the calendar page over to January 2013. Yes, I've learnt, especially this year, that there are no guarantees of being around for a future moment in time, but the odds are pretty good. And maybe it all comes down to odds and good timing.

Finally, a comment about the two words in the title, "Roti Chanai." Prior to yesterday this wouldn't have made it into the blog today, however as I returned from my daily bike ride yesterday, I stopped at one of the markets close by, located on Victoria Ave. The area I am currently living in has a very big Asian feel to it, and the markets are always interesting places to wander around in. Afterwards, I decided to ride slowly south on Victoria Ave., to see what other shops were in my area. I came across a restaurant which unfortunately is closed until November 20th, but as I looked over the menu in the window, I discovered that they had Roti Chanai on the menu. As I stood there in the afternoon drizzle, my mouth, literally began to water, just thinking about this dish which I haven't tasted since I was in Malaysia in 1979. The Roti is a simple bread, which is sort of flaky yet chewy, which is kind of hard to describe, but delicious all the same, and it is accompanied with the Chanai, which is just a curry flavoured sauce. You simply tear off a chunk of the Roti, and dip it in the Chanai, and then pop the whole thing into ones mouth. Just the thought of that, was what caused my mouth to be watering. As I am here until November 22nd, I plan to sneak over there and try some out. By the time I write next weeks entry, I will hopefully be able to report back as to whether my mouth watering yesterday was justified or not.

Now, as I look at my list of things to do today, I find that it is rather long, which is not usually the case. The weather appears to be on the drier side of things, and so it's time to get on to my bike and head out to get some exercise as well as to continue to check things off of my list.

Back again in one week's time.

cheers,
Paul
The Thoughtful Wanderer

ONLY THE SHADOW KNOWS

POST # 48

Back in the concrete jungle of Vancouver, only the Shadow knows for sure. Shadow is the new furball in charge of cat operations at my new and latest location for petsitting on 33rd avenue.

I arrived back in Vancouver yesterday, November 7th via a new bus service called Bolt Bus, which offered a safe and comfortable journey back across the border. My friend who was expected to meet me at the bus depot, was there, however for some strange reason we never saw each other, so I had to arrange for a plan b and that was easily enough done. Eventually though we did connect and soon after I was happily settled in at my new digs.
Shadow the cat, according to its owners is 39 inches long from the tip of his nose to the end of his tail. He is all black and a very friendly gentleman indeed, and I expect our two weeks together will be very relaxing.

This will be a different sort of relaxing as I am now back in the big city, and that is always an assault on the senses after spending around a month surrounded by the green, peace and tranquility which Orcas island is famous for. I am currently suffering Oscar and Felix withdrawal pains, however I think Shadow will help to make some of that go away as time goes by. I wish other pains would disappear just as easily, but such is life.

This being a brand new housesit for me, it will take a couple of days to get settled in to a routine which works, but it will also be an opportunity to get familiar with a different area of Vancouver, and with my trusty bike always close at hand, this should be a fun new adventure.

I am writing this blog entry from the warmth and comfort of the Vancouver central library. I ended up here, because the computer at the housesit allows me to access The Thoughtful Wanderer, blog, but for some reason (a computer glitch??) it doesn't allow me to write a new entry. However it's not all bad, as I needed an excuse to get out on such a wonderful sunny day for a bike ride, so a trip to the library provided me with that chance. But here, I am on the time clock as the computer only allows a certain amount, and that will be my excuse to keep this a rather short entry. It feels strange sitting back here at the library. This was a second home of sorts for me during my time in Vancouver because this was where I would get an opportunity each day to check the internet as well as read, read, read. As I sit here now, in some respects it feels as though I never left town.

However all I have to do is think about all the wonderful times I have experienced recently to realize that yes in fact there is life beyond the confines of this city and I am very grateful for the chance to move about and meet new people and think about new ideas. It is always a good thing to get outside of ones comfort zone now and again in order to stretch and grow as an individual.

So for the next couple of weeks I will be happy to spend my time with Shadow the cat and get to know all his habits, likes and dislikes. This will be my last cat time for a while as my two Yorkie buddies wait in the wings for their trusty housesitter to arrive later this month. In the meantime, it's just Shadow and me.
And ONLY THE SHADOW KNOWS.

The journey continues.

Happy trails.
Paul
The Thoughtful Wanderer

Delay

Readers please note that November 7th will be a travel day, so my regularly scheduled post for that day may or may not be delayed, but it will get done eventually.

Paul
The Thoughtful Wanderer

ANOTHER DECADE SPENT

POST # 47




I awoke early today, with the thought that I should get up and start writing this post but I was trapped. Most mornings when I awake I am lying on my side with my legs slightly bent at the knees. I don't know why, but it just is the case. Sometimes at this particular housesit, I find myself as the filling in a "cat sandwich." At some point during the evening the cats, Oscar and Felix slink into the bedroom, hop up on the bed to find the warm human and settle in and get comfortable. REAL COMFORTABLE. It's always the same. Felix takes up station just behind my knees nestled into the curve of my legs, and Oscar is on the opposite side curled up near my belly button. (checking for belly button lint???) So when I awoke, this was the situation I found myself in. As you might imagine it is a very warm and cozy arrangement, and the furballs looked so content, that I didn't have the heart to just get up and spoil the whole thing. So ever so gently I managed to turn myself over to my other side, and drift back into a peaceful slumber surrounded by two of my favourite cats. So now here I find myself after 9am only beginning to write my thoughts for the day. O and F have been fed, and they are now curled up sleeping yet again. What a life!!

I came across an article this week which was talking about a particular Greek island not that far from where my friends have settled in Crete, and it is known for the longevity of the people living there. Some of the things that come to mind now as I recall the article is that the people wake up naturally, as opposed to having an alarm wake them, they drink coffee, wine, have afternoon naps, and grow plenty of their own food, amongst other things and they have a solid sense of community. Sounds like a pretty good recipe for a pleasant life. It's probably difficult to distinguish between a cats' life and a humans' on this island. Both of them relaxed and happy day after day. Perhaps my friends in Crete have known about this Greek island lifestyle for a while now, and that is why they have relocated there from the hustle and bustle of the big city.

Now, moving right along, to the reason for the title of this blog. I get reminded time and again how I am good at remembering dates, and today, October 28th is no exception. In fact I remember exactly what house I was living at that day, in Dawson City, taking care of two dogs at a friends' place, one of my many Dawson housesits. The year was 2002, an entire decade ago. Now, people might wonder just how the heck could I be so clear on a memory from ten years ago but for me the answer is a very simple one. The reason I remember October 28th is because of October 29th. How does that make any sense? Well the 28th here means that it is the 29th in Australia. If that is so, then it means that my friend David in Melbourne is having another birthday. And the reason I remember his birthday so vividly from a decade ago was because when I called him that evening to wish him a happy birthday, I also asked him, "What's new?" A very simple and normal question to ask a friend that you haven't spoken to for a while. But it was his answer that caught me my surprise as it was at this point in our conversation that he told me he had just purchased a new sail boat which at the time was being manufactured in Durban South Africa, and he then went on to ask if I would like to join him for the voyage from there to Australia, early in 2003. After almost dropping the phone, I accepted the offer, and of course that forty three day voyage is now history, and has been written about elsewhere, so I won't go on about it here. But it's because of the content of that phone call, that I so vividly remember when and where I was all those years ago.

So as I sit writing these words, another entire decade of my life has passed by since that day, and it makes me pause to reflect on the time gone by and the events that have brought me to this point in my life. It also makes me appreciate yet again, how fast time flies by and I hope that with that realization I am even more appreciative of each moment that I have to spend. And we usually use the term "spend" when we talk about time and I think that is a rather appropriate way to look at it. Thoreau, when deciding on any course of action in his life, always wanted to work out how much the decision of whatever action he was going to take, was going to cost him. Cost in his terms, was how much time was going to be spent as a result of taking the action.
I think he had it right, all those years ago. It's a maxim that I try to follow as much as possible. And right along with that then comes the question, of how much value is gained from the time spent? Another good question to ask oneself every now and again.

OK, this entry is getting a bit on the lengthy side, so I'd best start to wind things up for now. As happens more often than not since I began writing this blog, I awake on the day wondering what on earth am I going to write about and then the words just fly onto the page. Whether or not they are words worth reading, depends on the point of view of the reader, however from my point of view, the time spent writing them is time well spent, and for me at least it has value.

This will be my last entry from Orcas island at least for this go around and the next scheduled post is for November 7th, which for me is a travel day back to Vancouver to start the next housesit. I seem to end up having travel days on blog days. It's not by design, but there you go. Hopefully I will get the writing done on schedule.

Now, time to go for a bike ride to exercise those legs of mine.

Happy trails,
Paul
The Thoughtful Wanderer

HAPPY BLOGIVERSARY PAUL

POST # 46


Jill and Jackson and Peach and Myrtle and Skidder and Breaker and Roxy and Dusty and Trouble and Otto and Oscar and Felix and Parker and Sadie and Bob and Blueberry and Mr.Bumples and Maggie and Tai and Jackson and Peach (again) and Marley and Pillow and The Girls and Tika and Oscar and Felix (again) AND THAT sums up all of the wonderfully loveable creatures I have had the pleasure of taking care of for the past year since I started this blog on October 21st, 2011. The Girls is my description of the six chickens I spent time with in Nanoose Bay and along with Mr. Bumples the toad, were the only non feline or canine critters who had to put up with me as their caregiver. As of this date I have had no nasty comments from any of these animals, in the comment section of the blog, so I can only assume that they were happy with the care I provided to them, and that's the good news, because it means that sometime in the future I may have the opportunity to help out again with any/all of the above list.

So the final tally is:
Cats-11
Dogs-10
Chickens- 6
Toads- 1

Plenty of fun and companionship was provided by all of these wonderful animals throughout the year and I would be hard pressed to single out any one of them for a special mention, because they all are unique and they all were a treat to care for. After looking through the list I see that four of my other favourite animals are not there, those being Jacob and Oliver my cat buddies in Vancouver and Einstein and the late Snoop, my dog buddies from East Vancouver, and it would be wrong not to include them here. However it just so happens, that I didn't have the opportunity during this time to be their housesitter, as housesitting at both of those venues took place prior to the start of The Thoughtful Wanderer.

Back on July 20th, 2011 I joined housecarers.com which is a website which matches housesitters with people looking for housesitters. Although at the time I had no idea how successful this would be, in fact it has turned out to be one of the best decisions I have ever made and has resulted in me getting to know a whole new group of people and their pets, and for that I am most grateful.

One of the primary reasons for joining housecarers was because it was based in Australia and even though it provided housesit listings from all over the world, a large portion of those were located in Australia and to a lesser extent in New Zealand.

By the early part of 2012 it would have been three years since I had last had a visit to my friends downunder, and I thought that joining housecarers would be an opportunity to do something that I love, that is, taking care of pets, and combine this with a visit south of the equator to visit friends. At least that was the plan as of July, 2011. And it seemed to me like a reasonable plan at that, and the odds were better than even that I could accomplish it. However late in the year I received an email from my friends in the Yukon, asking me if I would consider a return visit to their place in Bear Creek, just outside of Dawson City, in December to care for their three border collies and two cats. Well, for more reasons than I could list here, it was an offer I couldn't refuse, and at the time I thought, well no problem, it's only for December and I will still be able to make arrangements for early in 2012 to head south. How wrong that turned out to be.

One thing led to another and before long the housesit requests on this side of the Pacific were beginning to stack up, and as a result, I remained and still remain here on the North American continent in 2012. The geographic area has been small, for this world traveller, and has encompassed one Canadian Territory, The Yukon, two Canadian provinces, British Columbia and Alberta, and two US states, Washington and Oregon. Due to the limited area travelled, transport has been rather easy, with only the trip to the Yukon provided by air travel. The remainder has been mostly by bus or train with only the very occasional and very short automobile trips.

I had hoped when I began this writing journey, to post a different entry four times each month, however that didn't quite work out the way I planned as I did not have access to a computer terminal a few times during this period, due to my unscheduled visits to hospital. However even though it wasn't a perfect record of four per month I am happy with the result.

My "homeless" housesitter status actually began on October 1st 2011 a few weeks before I started this blog. At the time I had no idea how successful this would be, and having sold my sailboat I had intentionally put myself into a position where there might be some times when I wasn't quite sure that I would have a place to hang my hat. I did have a Plan B at least for Vancouver, that being simply to camp out at the airport, if I needed a roof over my head. After all, the airport was easy to get to and my needs are so few, one of which is to have a roof of some sort over my head every night, and the airport seemed to be a perfect solution for those in between housesit times. It worked brilliantly for a few occasions until not that long ago, when I was finally tapped on the shoulder one night, and told, politely I might add, that I could no longer use this venue as a place of rest. But hey, it was good while it lasted, and was all part of the adventure.

This year of housesitting has also allowed me to live the simple life that I find so attractive and stress free. If I have said this once I have said it a thousand times,
"as long as I have a roof over my head and a full belly, I really don't have anything to complain about." I still feel that way, maybe even more so in light of the events of the past year. Now, I am simply happy to just have another day to spend, and so it is extremely easy for me to wake up every day with a smile, knowing that I am alive and that I have another opportunity with the day ahead to just breath the air and enjoy my life for as long as it will last. Early on when I began this blog, I wrote down the letters, SAWAFAATRIAB which stands for, "Some air, water and food, and all the rest is a bonus." I'm sticking with that. It fits nicely with my view of a simple life.

The year has had many highlights which are too numerous to mention, but suffice to say that I have come away with a greater appreciation for each and every moment of life itself, and I have been provided with some unexpected happiness which I could have never anticipated when this blog began.

What's in store for the next twelve months is anyone's guess at this point. I, like many people, try to imagine my life in the future, and attempt to make plans that I hope to accomplish sometime and somewhere "out there." I guess that is just a part of being human and having a brain that can imagine a future moment in time, and I have to admit that I do like to take part in that exercise. But I also know deep down, that this precise moment in time, this second, is my life, and it's all I really have, and as a result of the events of the past year, I know that I appreciate the moment, more than I ever did before. So that's a very good thing as far as I am concerned.

My quest to head back to Australia still remains strong at this point, but in the meantime I am happy, no very happy to be right here, right now, and the mystery which is the future will unfold as it will, and I along with it. Life is truly an adventure and I hope it continues on for a little while longer.

The journey continues...

Paul
The Thoughtful Wanderer

C-A-R AND ?????

POST # 45


Well, maybe I should have begun the title of this blog post with the "??????" because when I awoke this morning, which was quite late by the way, after having a very restful sleep, I soon realized that it was blog day again, and I really didn't have any idea where this story would begin, or end for that matter. Kind of like life, really. It seems like this time has come around again too soon, as a result of writing my last entry on the ninth instead of the seventh as normally scheduled.

I was originally awake around 4:30am and it briefly crossed my mind then that I should get up and start writing at that point. But Oscar was curled up in the crook of my legs and he looked so content so I used him as my weak excuse to drift back into dreamsville and lately there have been plenty of good dreams.

But by the time Felix arrived in the bedroom I knew that it must be time to get up. The boys were attempting to tell me through their actions that it was breakfast time and that I'd better get my lazy body up and out of bed in order to take care of their needs. I enticed Felix up on the bed to join Oscar and me for a little early morning group cuddle which is always nice, but as soon as I began to pull the covers back, they were down on the floor, and had started up one of their regular cat boxing matches, which is a hoot to watch. It begins with the "stare" during which time they begin to size up their opponent. This is followed by the very slow "dance" as they move around each other in a tight circular pattern, never taking their eyes off of one another. Finally one or the other of them begins to raise up a paw in the first signs of "attack" mode, and once that has happened it's only a matter of time before the other one raises his paw, and then the boxing has begun. I never see any claws come out and they just seem to be having fun getting some exercise. As fast as it began, it is soon over, and soon they are licking each others faces, as if to say, "don't worry brother, I still love you." It's great entertainment for the housesitter, and the boys appear to be having fun doing it, so it's all good.

With round one of the boxing match complete, and with the housesitter up and dressed, we head to the kitchen, or should I say that they lead me to the kitchen, and specifically to the cupboards beneath the sink, because that is where the cat food is located. "Meow,Paul we're hungry, and you got up very late today, so would you please drop everything else that you're doing and serve us up our breakfast?" I just hear the meow part, and that's enough for me. I need to get this task completed first, otherwise I will have two furballs hanging around on the floor beside me when I am doing my morning exercises. However, once the food is out, then I don't exist for a while in their minds, and I can go about my morning routine uninterrupted. Soon, Oscar and Felix will be outside taking care of business as it were, and for a while the house seems rather lonely without their presence. This new place that Cathy lives in since I was last on Orcas, is fully equipped with cat doors, which makes my life so much easier. At her previous house, I was upstairs in a loft, so each time the boys wanted to go out, I would have to walk down the stairs to facilitate this. Then every now and again I would have to take a look downstairs to see if one or both were ready to come back in. It was usually just one, which meant having to repeat the
exercise until both were back inside. Of course usually by that time the other one was thinking about going out again, which started the whole process all over. I think they were doing it that way just to get a kick out of having the housesitter go up and down, up and down the stairs. Now, it's all too easy. The other day I was outside walking past the cat door, and I had to chuckle as Cathy has written up on the wall above the door, "Oscar and Felix only." Orcas cats are known to be extremely intelligent, so once a stranger reads the sign, he/she moves on. So far I haven't had any other cats in the house, so I guess the sign is working. In a little while they will both be back inside, and curled up in one of the many cat friendly places there are here, and settling into their morning nap routine. Ah, the life of the cat. Eat, sleep for 14 hours a day, eat, sleep, repeat. Not too tough of a life, at least for these two boys.

Moving on, this week I have had a couple of "hunting" trips not too far from the house. October is apple time here on Orcas and after only a few rides around on the bike I came across a variety of trees just overloaded with apples ready for the picking and yet no one was doing that. I checked with a few locals to make sure that I wasn't going to be doing something I shouldn't be, that is, picking apples, and the word was go for it. So the apple hunt began. I managed to find a garden tool and a bucket that I could duck tape to it, and with this device I was able to increase my reach and capture more apples than I could have otherwise. I also found a little two step ladder to use. Cathy has a taller ladder, but with my leg the way it is, I didn't feel comfortable being that far from the ground. Anyhow the system I devised worked fine and I have a couple of varieties of apples now in the fridge. Last count was around sixty or more, and each day I manage to eat through three or four. Today I plan to go on another apple plucking adventure, and with the wind that has happened overnight and is still blowing strongly this morning, I might not even need to pick any, as the wind probably has done that for me. We'll see later today. An apple a day... I shouldn't be seeing any doctors for quite a long time.

I guess that brings me to the weather. Geez, Paul, your brain must be really short on ideas if you have resorted to talking about the weather. But it is worthy to note that as of yesterday we had a good soaking rain, and it's the first rain I can remember in many, many weeks. In that period of time I've been here, Vancouver and Everett, and the grass was dry and brown, so I am sure this will be a welcome relief. I am guessing that a certain dog in Everett is happy with the cooler weather for sure. But I can already picture the conversations in Vancouver. After a few days, the locals will be complaining about the rain. Maybe, maybe not, but as far as I am concerned it's a nice change. At this point I could go into a long essay about climate change, but if I've learned anything over the past seven years since I have been making a serious study of the subject, most people, at least most people that I have come across either don't want to talk about it, or even hear about it. Or maybe they're just too busy. I have come to the conclusion, probably too late, that it has been my emotional delivery of the topic that has had a negative impact on the listening audience. So now, even though I keep up to date with the latest facts and figures, I tend to keep quiet on the subject for the most part or if I do come across a willing listener, I try to deliver the message and keep my emotions out of it. But for me, that is still a challenge. After all the rhetoric, it really simply comes down to math and physics. Exponential curves and positive feedback loops that are rapidly changing the world in which we live, our only home. There is more than enough information out there for those who have an interest, and the subject can be explained much more eloquently than I could ever try to do. In the meantime I will continue to live my simplified lifestyle, which is the one thing that I can do, even though it's not enough. But it helps me sleep better at night.

Well, that last paragraph was a bit of a rant on a topic that probably doesn't belong in a blog about housesitting, but there it is. Perhaps I'll start another blog and dedicate it to climate change.

Back here at the ranch, the furballs are now back inside and are finishing up their self cleaning, prior to the morning snooze. I'm almost at the end of this post, and it's just about time to go out for a bike ride.

One final note about the title. The C was for Cats, the A for Apples, and the R was for rain. As far as the ???'s go, when I began this, that's how my brain felt, not knowing what to write about. Well now it's done, and I can get on to other tasks for the day ahead, including another apple hunt.

Peaceful times on Orcas Island

Happy Wandering,
Paul
The Thoughtful Wanderer

And one small PS. After finishing this blog, I walked out on the front deck only to be totally enthralled by the activities of a hummingbird collecting nectar from a plant on the front porch. Magic!

BETTER LATE THAN NEVER

POST # 44


Without going into any boring old technical details, my electronic link to the outside world has now been restored, and as a result I can continue on with my blog, which is a couple of days overdue.

Since my last posting, I have resettled my bones, both the good ones and the ones on the mend, back here on lovely Orcas island. This is now my third visit to this peaceful island oasis, and I am happy to be back with my furball friends Oscar and Felix. Oscar appears to have caught up to Felix in the size department since my last visit in February, which gives him a more even match with his brother, when they get started with their daily "boxing" matches with each other. Felix is probably wondering why he hasn't quite got the edge over Oscar that he had in the past.

Also, since my last visit, Cathy,the owner, has relocated to a new home, not far from where she was renting, but now she has her own house which has about twice as much space as before, and a yard as well. The furballs have a whole new world to explore, and in the short time I have been back on the scene, they seem to have adapted to it very well and appear to be quite content with the new location. It is a couple of blocks further from the beach, so my nightly walk there with the cats is now off of their agenda which is unfortunate, however the boys and I can walk up the road from the new house if we chose to and that will have to do.

Cathy's former residence was a loft above a house near the beach, which was a very cozy location. It was rather tiny, but compared to living on a sailboat, it was more than enough space for me. I am one of those people who feels cozy rather than claustrophobic in a small space. I guess you are either one or the other. I'll take SNUG over a McMansion any day of the week, and I am not sure why. However I have a book which I purchased many years ago, titled "The Hand Sculpted House." The book is a detailed account of how to build a cob house, and one of the authors, Linda Smiley, talks about this business of feeling cozy in a small space in the introduction of the book. She is one of those type of people and she attributes this partly at least to the fact that as a newborn baby she was in an incubator for a while, and as a result of that experience, she felt safe in a small space. Having weighed in at only 4 pounds, 9 ounces when I was born, I too have some incubator time under my belt. Whether or not this early experience affects how we feel about the space that surrounds us is probably up for debate. All I know is, as far as I am concerned, small is better, and that would partly explain why to this day my little shack in the bush called SNUG is still at the top of my list as my favourite home. It was only about 80 square feet in total, which wouldn't even be the size of the bathroom in some houses, yet the longer I lived there, the more I thought that I had too much space. Anyhow, all of this rambling on is just another way of saying that my current location is very roomy indeed, and it will take a while to adjust to it after the previous Orcas location. But adapt to it I will, and I am sure that Oscar, Felix and myself will be content in our new location together.

In other news, my leg continues to slowly improve, and even though the changes are small ones, the direction is positive and for that I am grateful. It's been just over 7 months now since my fall, and I seem to recall being told way back when I was still in the hospital that it could take the better part of a year before I would be back to any kind of normal walking, so we'll see how that all goes. The bike riding has been a great blessing indeed, and I try to make that a part of my daily routine. Riding is important and the added bonus, is that I love to ride, so my rehab ends up just being fun in the end. I don't imagine that too many people ever think that way about rehab. I am thinking about making my second journey up to the top of Mt. Constitution, the highest point here on Orcas at some time during my stay. It's been great bike riding weather of late, and it would seem a shame not to take advantage of it while it lasts. Whether I go to the top of the mountain or not, I will most certainly continue my daily rides exploring the backroads of the island.

I think I'll wrap this up now, because it will be a shorter time between blogs, and I want to have something to write about on the next one.

Now, it's time for some cat bonding with the furballs.

Until next time.
Stay happy,

Paul
The Thoughtful Wanderer

Possible post delay

To one and all,
I may or may not be able to access a computer terminal on Nov 7th, so that blog entry could be delayed by a day or two. BUT IT WILL GET WRITTEN.
CHEERS,
Paul
TTW

THE PHILLIP LAW AND DR. PHILLIP LAW

POST # 43


It started off as a pleasant autumn day, and I was up rather early to do some last minute tidying up on board the "Phillip Law" the sailboat that I had owned and lived on for the past seven years in Vancouver. I wanted to make sure that everything was ship shape today, because I had two potential buyers coming to the marina to have a look and I wanted the boat to be looking her very best.

The first couple arrived around 1pm as I recall, an older couple whom I had talked to previously on the phone that week. Everything was going swimmingly, and they liked what they saw. After about an hour or so, as we sat out in the cockpit on this sunny afternoon, they made me an offer. Now I had had other "offers" in the past, which for one reason or another had fizzled away, but what set this offer apart was that the people were prepared to go with me right then and there, to their bank, so that they could take out the cash and hand it over to me. This was as good an offer as I had ever had and for that matter was ever likely to get.

So there we sat, buyer and seller on the cusp of a deal. They get what they want, and I get what I want. Simple right? Well sometimes things aren't as simple as they first appear.

Now a bit of background. The Phillip Law had been for sale for quite some time and as the months wore on, and the season as well, the price kept dropping in the hopes of finding that magic number that would be agreeable to both parties. Selling a boat at the best of times is challenging as there will always be more boats for sale than buyers, but in late 2011 with the state of world affairs, owning a boat was one of those "nice to haves" as opposed to "must have" items. As a result it was most definately a buyer's market.

OK, so with that in mind let's revisit the scene described above. I HAVE A BUYER and not only that, they are prepared to go and get the cash right now and do the deal. Easy right? Make the deal,right? RIGHT? Well there was one tiny complication. The previous evening, a young guy had phoned to ask if the boat was still for sale, and I had told him yes, but that I had a couple coming over the next afternoon who sounded very interested. He asked me to do him one favour. He said, "Paul, could you at least wait until I come over late in the afternoon with my brother to have a look before you make a decision." I gave him my word that I would, because at that point in time, I figured two potential buyers was better than one.

Back again to the cockpit scene. Being a man of my word, I explained to the couple, that even though they had made me an offer, I promised these two young men that I wouldn't sell the boat until they had had an opportunity to look at it.
"Just call them right now and explain that the boat is sold" the man said to me.

So there I sat, with that old saying "a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush" rattling through my brain. Do the deal Paul, but wait, you promised those young guys a look. What to do???

At that point, I walked down the companionway into the main cabin, picked up the phone and dialled Stephan, to explain to him, "sorry Stephan the boat is sold." That didn't go over very well, let me tell you. And he was quick to remind me that I had promised him a look. He went on to explain that both he and his brother had arranged to finish work early this day, in order to get down to the marina. Then he asked me what the couple was offering and I told him, and over the phone he offered me more. Now what? So I decided to stick to my word, which was what I had wanted to do all along, which calmed Stephan down, but had the exact opposite effect on the couple in the cockpit, who had listened to the entire conversation.

When I returned topsides, it was like I was facing two totally different people. A few minutes before, everyone was happy and smiling, but that had now past. I had two very annoyed potential buyers facing me. I felt like I was trying to please everyone but of course in a situation such as this, it wasn't going to happen. They barely looked me in the eye after that, and the walk to the marina gate seemed to take forever. I told them that I would call them once I knew what the result of the other offer was, but as they walked up the ramp, and I returned to the Phillip Law, I had this sinking feeling that I had kissed goodbye to a sure thing. Would Stephan and his brother even show up? There had been plenty of no shows in the past, and even if they did show up, would they like the boat and make me an offer? And if not, had I sufficiently pissed off the previous couple to the point that they wouldn't want to do business with me ever again? All these questions were going through my head as I walked back along the dock.

My neighbour Tommy, and another neighbour Bill, two old salts in their '70's came up to ask how things went, and I explained the whole thing. They both reiterated the "bird in the hand" line, which was all I needed to hear at that point. They had been around for all the previous potential buyers, and I know at that point they thought that I had made a very big error in judgement.

Be that as it may I now sat back onboard waiting, hoping, that the phone would ring, and sure enough, right at the appointed time, Stephan and his brother arrived. Two young French Canadian lads, keen on having a boat of their own. After introductions, they got right to it, checking various things, like the sails, the through hull connections, rigging, and of course the engine, which I fired up so that they could see how it ran. Everything went to perfection, and after about an hour, they said the words I was hoping to hear, "We'd like to buy your boat, Paul". And with that, a contract was signed and they pulled a bundle of cash out and the deal was completed. To top it off, I ended up with more than I would have if I had sold it to the previous couple. Prior to their departure, we arranged a date for the handover, which gave me a few more days to finalize things. They would take over the boat on October 1st, the day I would depart for Orcas island to go housesitting.

All of this happened exactly one year ago today, September 28th 2011, and so I guess that would be the date that I considered myself officially homeless, even though I wouldn't be leaving the boat for a few more days. I certainly had mixed feelings about selling her. After all, the reason for my purchase back in 2004 was not just to live aboard, but my plan, goal, dream, was to set sail to the west and do one lap of mother earth. Certainly not an impossible dream by any stretch of the imagination. I wanted to do the trip solo, primarily for the personal challenges that I would be faced with along the way. It would have been new ground for this adventurous spirit, ground which I wasn't sure that I could cover. However, one never knows, until you try, and even though the thought of this adventure, dredged up some fears, I still felt that I was willing to give it a shot.

Whether it was those unknown fears, or whether it was the fact that in recent years, I have been more focused on other issues that I feel are much more important, who knows, but the bottom line is at least for now, that dream has been filed away. I haven't given up on the idea, but we still have to see what the future holds in store as to whether I give it a second shot. Only time will tell.

Now as a footnote to this story, well it wouldn't be complete without mentioning my departed friend, Dr. Phillip Law, who died back in 2010 at the age of 98, and of course the person I named my boat after. I have mentioned Phil once before back in an April blog, as this past April 21st he would have celebrated his 100th birthday.
I think about him quite often, but today more than usual because of the content of this story. The last time I had the opportunity to see Phil alive was on a trip back to Australia in 2009. There he was, the first day I visited him, at the age of almost 97, working away editing the final book that he would produce. Even at that age, there was still work to be done, and Phil being the practical scientist that he was, wanted to make sure all the work was done, before he checked out. What an inspiration he was, and still is in my life, and as I think about him now, my eyes well up with tears. How fortunate I was to have had a friend like Phil. His adventurous spirit stills lives within me, and for that I am forever grateful. And maybe, just maybe, it will be Phil's spirit which guides me across the oceans of the world on board another sailing boat, which would have to be named the "Phillip Law II".

Maybe, maybe not. The future is not yet written.


I think that is more than enough words for today. I had no idea that I would go on for so long, but the words just flowed from my mind to my fingertips to the computer keys, so I thought it best to just get them down, while I had the time and inspiration to do so. I hope my readers enjoy reading the story as much as I enjoyed writing it.

Now, I am way overdue for my daily bike ride, so I must be off.


Happy trails,
Paul
The Thoughtful Wanderer

LEAVING WASHINGTON (AGAIN)

POST # 42


It's just after 5am as I begin to write these words. I hadn't planned on getting up this early, but there must be something in this blogger's mind that causes him to want to try and get the words written before the day is out, so here I sit for the final time in front of the computer screen, with the letters flopping onto the page faster than my mind can come up with the next word, especially at this early hour.

My human brain would like to think that this morning, Tika dog would be having a tear in her eye, because of my imminent departure later this morning, but in fact she's sound asleep at the moment in dog dream land, probably dreaming about her owner, Mary who will be arriving back home later today. I am very sure that they will both be happy to see each other soon and it would be nice to be around to see the reunion, however that won't be the case this morning. In a few hours from now I will be boarding the Amtrak Cascades train for my return journey to Vancouver to begin my next housesit assignment.

As I sit here and reflect back on my time in Everett, I am happy with my thoughts of what has been my life since arriving here on September third. There have been plenty of good things that have happened over this time period, some of which I couldn't even have anticipated at the beginning. I've made some new friends along the journey, and that has to be a good thing.

During my time here I did have a car at my disposal, however I also had a bike to ride. For those who know me well, they can already guess at what my preferred mode of transport has been during my stay. But one day this past week I actually did take the opportunity to use the car and went for a drive to the historic little town of Snohomish which is a short distance east of my current location. Snohomish is an example of what I think small town USA would have been like a hundred years ago, with a wonderful main street, with all sorts of shops to look through. Naturally I took Tika along for the ride so she could have a bit of a new adventure, at least a new adventure for us anyhow. I tried to make sure to walk on the shady side of the street, in order to keep Tika as cool as possible, which I hope she appreciated. With a good looking dog like her, virtually everyone that we walked past would smile and make a comment about her, and the most frequent comment was "What a beautiful looking dog." Each time we would stop, and say hello, and it was great to meet a few of the Snohomish locals. One of the men who stopped to say hello, had two canes to support himself. He would have been much younger than me, and like me, he was wearing shorts. The reason he needed the canes to walk, was that from just below his hips, he had two artificial legs. Even though I was curious to find out just how he managed to end up that way, I didn't ask, as one never knows what sort of emotions might be stirred up by such an innocent inquiry. But as we said our goodbyes, I walked away thinking for the umpteenth time just how fortunate I am to still have both of my legs.

The afternoon in Snohomish was a very sunny one, like they have all been since I arrived here in Washington, and soon enough Tika was looking like she had had her fill of walking for the day so we headed back home for our late afternoon naps. That is one of the bonuses of being a petsitter, you get to have an afternoon nap if you feel like it.

It's still dark out, and Tika is snoozing peacefully on the back porch. She'll be that way for some time yet. I on the other hand must get this rather short blog entry finished, and then continue my packing up in anticipation of my departure to the train station. One more "walk around" to see that everything is in order here, and to make sure that I haven't left anything behind. But when one travels as light as I do, it doesn't take very long to pack or look around.

My hope is that when Mary arrives home that she will (a) find the house in order and (b) find a happy dog. Maybe that order should be reversed. In any event from my point of view, it has been another successful house/pet sit, and I am very grateful for having had the opportunity to take part in it.

Friends of Mary's have offered to pick me up this morning which is very kind and generous of them, and it certainly makes my life easier. So I had best gulp down the last few sips of coffee, and get ready to go.

I'll leave Everett, but I'll take away some very warm memories, and what is life, if not a collection of memories?

The thinking and wandering will continue next week on the other side of the 49th parallel.

Happy trails.

Paul
The Thoughtful Wanderer

Vancouver PS: An uneventful and very relaxing train journey back to Canada. And now I have my bike back so it's time to get off of this library computer and gets some riding in before the sun goes down. Sweet memories of Everett lingering in my mind.

THE MOAI AND THE BIKE RIDE

POST # 41


In the morning, after I'm out of bed, and after I have done my morning exercises, I stand in the kitchen waiting for the water to boil. As I do this I gaze out the window which overlooks my neighbours' yard here in Everett, and in the yard, there is a reasonable facsimilie of a Moai looking back at me. The Moai are the stone statues left behind on Easter island many centuries ago. But I'll come back to them in due course.

A quick check out the back door confirms that Tika the dog is sleeping peacefully on the back porch, as it is still quite early. She looks totally content lying there, and instead of opening the door, I decide to let her sleep for a little while longer while I do some reading and enjoy a cup of hot coffee. Once the coffee is finished it's time to say "Good morning Tika" and ask her if she had a good sleep. Like as if I'm going to get an answer. But I suppose that talking to animals comes with the job, and she doesn't seem to mind because soon she knows that the word "breakfast" will be spoken to her, and even though I would like to think that she is really happy to see me every morning, the real reason for her excitement is in knowing that soon she will be chowing down on her favourite food.

Yesterday, I decided to go on an extended bike ride heading down, down, down, towards the Snohomish river to see what I could see, and hopefully find a quiet spot in the shade by the river bank where I could do some reading. At the moment I am reading a work of fiction, which is quite out of the ordinary for me, but it just so happens that it's the type of story which the reader, well at least this reader, can't wait to get back to.

As I coasted down the hills towards the river I came to a footbridge which crosses over railway tracks and at the end of this footbridge there is a water run off from interstate 5 which I had to ride underneath to get to this point. A sign there explains to the reader that this was purpose built to capture the water which comes off of a 3 mile stretch of the interstate. The sign says that 3 million gallons a year ends up here, but instead of having the water, which contains all sorts of nasty heavy metals, oil, etc. go directly into the Snohomish river, it is "filtered" through a wetland prior to its final journey to the river. Now I guess on the face of it, this seems to be a good idea, attempting to clean up the water prior to its arrival at the river, but I couldn't help but wonder about all the other tainted water that runs off of the rest of interstate 5 which according to wikipedia has a total length of 1381.29 miles (2222.97km) and where it all ends up. And all the other interstates as well. The other thing that I noticed was that there was actually water falling down from the bridge to the wetland below, and I was curious to know why. Since I have been here in Everett, arriving on Sept 3rd, with the exception of a few spits of drizzle about a week ago, it has been dry, dry, dry. So where is this water really coming from?

Well enough about that. With the bike balanced with my left arm and my right arm holding firmly onto the railing provided, I slowly descended the stairway down to the ground where I continued on my journey eventually popping out through the trees to a pathway that paralleled the river heading in a northerly direction. I felt happy now, slowly wending my way along the path, and stopping every now and again to gaze out at the river. Eventually the path made a rather sharp turn to the west through the trees and then came to an abrupt end. Here I was faced with a curious sight. In front of me was a brand new roadway, which could have been built just yesterday, and was complete will all the appropriate road markings and signs, but the curious part about it was that it went nowhere and was not being used. It just dead ended at where I was now standing. This short stretch of roadway included a roundabout and a bridge which went over top of the same railway tracks I had recently crossed, heading in a westerly direction back towards Everett. As there was no traffic, I continued my journey as far as I could go onto the bridge before coming to a spot that was blocked off by a fence and concrete blocks. THE END OF THE LINE as far as I was concerned.

From this vantage point on the bridge, I had a view of the surrounding area. Directly in front of me and below where I was now standing was an auto wreckers yard which appeared to me that it has been there for a very long time. I say this only because of some of the rusted out shells of cars that looked to be as old as the 1940's vintage. Hundreds and hundreds of automobiles squeezed into this yard, like so many sardines in a can. All I could imagine was they will all be there until the end of time, with maybe a few more added from the interstate every now and again. The metal, glass and plastic detritus of our current civilization.

As I gazed out further to the north, through the haze I could barely make out what appeared to be the image of Mount Baker. If I would have been born a hundred years ago and stood on this very spot, I imagine Mount Baker would have been quite easy to see. But not today, and of course there is a connection between my hazy view and the dead cars below, and all the other cars that are whizzing past on the interstate, but it is where we find ourselves in North America in 2012. Decisions were made a long long time ago which helped to turn our culture into one which is so very dependent on the automobile. And now, at least for a while longer, we are stuck with it.

I'd seen enough at this point and so I happily hopped back onto my bike and coasted down the hill and back onto the bike path which took me back to the river, where I could find a place on the grass to rest for a while and think about things. Even here, surrounded by green, and water, the constant hum of interstate 5 droned on in the background.

Eventually I decided that it was time to head back to see how Tika dog was doing, and began my climb up the hill towards home. Normally this wouldn't have been too challenging, and I don't mind hill climbing on a bike, but the current bike was one of the old styles with only 3 gears and so from time to time I had to get off and walk. But it was all good exercise for my leg(s).

I arrived home to a dog which was happy to see me, and I guess that is one of the best things about dogs. Even in the short time I've known her, Tika greets me like a long lost friend.

Once back in the house, I could again see the Moai in the neighbours yard and it made me think of a couple of books I've read in recent years that talk about the collapse of civilizations. Joseph Tainter's book, "The Collapse of Complex Societies", and Jared Diamond's book "Collapse" both go into detail about how societies end, and Easter island is a classic example. The islanders exhausted their resource base, and once that was complete, it was only a matter of time before their society collapsed. When I began to reflect on the days events, I couldn't help but think of how fast we are using up our resource base, and wonder just how much longer we can continue on this path before mother nature puts a halt to all this nonsense. Commenting about this to a friend of the owner of the house I am currently staying at, my exact words were, "The earth is now Easter island" and he seemed to agree with that.

But here we all are and none of us had the choice of being born at this particular moment in history, so I guess we are all going to find out one way or the other how things progress from here. What was the old Chinese saying, "May you live in interesting times." Well, it appears that we certainly are in 2012.

I open the window, and look down at Tika, who is now hanging out in her favourite shady spot. She looks up at me, and as I mull over the thoughts in my head, she gives me that look which seems to say with her eyes, "Isn't it just about time for a dog biscuit, Paul?" Thanks Tika girl, for bringing me back to the present moment.

The thoughtful wandering continues...

Paul
The Thoughtful Wanderer

And a ps. Next week on Sept. 21st I will be saying goodbye to my current home and heading back to Vancouver. Depending on how the day goes, I will try and make the time to get my blog completed, but I guess the proof will be in the pudding.

DAWSON CITY WASHINGTON

POST # 40


For folks who have been reading The Thoughtful Wanderer for a while, you'll probably think that he has finally lost touch with reality this time. Being a world traveller and having lived in Dawson City, one would suspect that I should know that Dawson City is not in Washington state. But there is a dog here named Tika who I've been telling stories to about the Yukon weather and how she would find the temperature there just right for her. She would be as happy as a clam in minus 50 degrees or more, and she would fit right in, in Dawson.

You see, Tika is a Malamute, and a very large one at that with a big bushy coat of hair which would more than compensate for colder temperatures, certainly much colder than the weather here in Everett Washington where I currently find myself. If I just focus on her, and not my surroundings, I can imagine that I am right back in the Yukon surrounded by her and other Husky dogs. But then I notice the pear and the apple tree in the back yard, both full of fruit at the moment, and I know that I am not there.

I had no idea whatsoever when I wrote my last blog that I would be here, but I am certainly happy that I am and I would like to think that Tika is as well. I was fortunate enough to find a housesit here on very short notice, and after a couple of emails back and forth and a phone call to Mary, we knew we had a match. My scheduled housesit had to cancel due to a sick cat named Jake, and Mary's housesitter had to cancel at the last moment, and so here I am.

So on September 3rd I boarded the Amtrak train from Vancouver and about three and a half relaxing hours later the Amtrak Cascades train pulled into the station at Everett, where Mary was there to greet me. Arriving in a strange place especially at night is always interesting especially if the person you arranged to meet doesn't show up. An added complication is when you have never met. But Mary did not disappoint, and we seemed to know each other right away.

One of the drawbacks, if one could call it that to this housesitting life, is that I rarely get to spend any time with the person I am housesitting for. The standard situation is that I arrive, and they leave relatively soon after. But this time Mary and I had two nights and one whole day to spend and we hit it off right away as if we have know each other all our lives. This made for a very comfortable start to the housesit and I feel like I've made a friend for life in Mary.

Mary left very early in the morning the day before yesterday and so now it's just Tika and me. Unfortunately for Tika but fortunately for me, she has a bit of arthritis which slows her down, but makes our walking pace just about right for me with my not yet back to normal leg. We make the perfect couple as we stroll along through the suburbs here in Everett. She gets to sniff at all the wonderful smells along the way and I get the opportunity to survey my new landscape.

And speaking of the landscape, it is very brown right now. Mary had mentioned to me how many days they have had without any rain and I can't remember the exact number but it seemed like a lot for the Pacific Northwest. But with the pace of climate change accelerating even faster than the climate scientists originally thought even just a few short years ago, this weather is probably going to be more common and no doubt Tika isn't going to be very happy about that. I could go on at this point about the climate, but as this blog is primarily related to my housesitting adventures, I won't. Suffice to say that like the old Bachman Turner Overdrive song from the '70's said, "BBBbaby you just ain't seen nnnothin' yet." It's all very sad, really.

Back here at the ranch, Tika is relaxing in the shade by the side of the house after her morning walk, catching whatever cool breeze that she can in order to keep as comfortable as possible. Maybe she's dreaming about cats, but she could also be dreaming about winter and snow, a time when I am pretty sure that she is most happy with the temperature. Or maybe, just maybe, she is dreaming of a place called Dawson City way up there in the Yukon, where I've told her that the temperature can get well below the minus 50 mark, and she's thinking that maybe one day she might have the chance to experience how wonderful that temperature would feel to her. But in the meantime, she's got a pretty good life right here in Everett, and I have the good fortune to be her care giver until Sept 21st, and for that I am grateful indeed.


Until next time,

Paul
The Thoughtful Wanderer